Coupling



April 27, 1943. P. s. MADSEN ETAL COUPLING Original Filed Oct. '7. 1937 Patented Apr. 27, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE COUPLING Paul S. Madsen, Bethany, and Arthur A. Arnold, Hamden, Conn., assignors to The Seamless Rubber Company, New Haven, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut 4 Claims.

This invention relates to syringes, and is especially applicable to fountain syringes of the general type described in our Patent No. 2,273,128, dated February 17, 1942, of which the present application is a division, However, our improvements are also applicable to syringes and like devices of other types.

One of the objects of the invention is the provision of a syringe in which the syringe tube can be readily applied to and detached from the water receptacle so that the water receptacle is adapted to serve in other capacities than as a part of a fountain syringe, the device having an improved form of connection between the syringe tube and the receptacle, which greatly facili'- tates manipulation and use.

Another object is to provide in a device of this character an assembly or appliance serving as a coupling between the receptacle and the tube and serving additionally as an effective means for controlling the discharge of liquid from the receptacle. v

To these and other ends the invention consists in the novel features and combination of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 isa face view of a device embodying our improvements, showing the same in position for use as a fountain syringe;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged section on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional View of a portion of the receptacle with the syringe tube detached and the valve closed; and

Fig. 4 is an enlarged section on line 4 4 of Fig. 1.

In the drawing, we have shown at I 0 a receptacle adapted to be supported from its upper end on a suitable supporting wall or the like. At I I is shown a syringe tube adapted to be plugged into or removed from the receptacle, the connection between the tube and the receptacle being generally indicated at I2.

The receptacle I0 in this particular instance is a flat rectangular bag of rubber, adapted to serve under certain conditions as a water bag or ice bag, and provided with a special end closure, as described in our Patent No. 2,273,128, dated February 1'7, 1942. This special end closure is generally indicated at I3 in Fig. 3, and

it will be seen that when used for fountain syringe purposes this end closure is at the lower end of the bag, with the connection I2, previously mentioned, located slightly above the end closure. The connection I2 enables the rubber syringe tube I I to communicate with a water chamber in the bag, the bottom wall of the water chamber being constituted in part by a partition I4, from which extends a rollable neck I5, as described in the application above mentioned.

The connection I2 comprises as a part thereof a valve housing I6, formed integrally with the walls of the rubber bag', a part of this housing preferably merging into the partition I4, as

shown. Within the valve housing I6 is a valve plug I'I. This valve plug I'I, which is made of rubber, is provided with a laterally extending flange I8 adapted to seat in an annular recess I9 formed in the bore of the valve housing. In this manner the valve plug is removably held in place. The valve plug is provided with an opening or socket 2U extending inwardly from the outer end thereof part way through the valve body. From the inner end of this opening 20 to the inner end of the valve plug the plug is split longitudinally at 2| so as to divide it into two separable parts. In the normal position, however, these parts are held together under strong compression by an inner ring-like integral rubber part of the valve housing, indicated at 22.V

The syringe tube II is provided at its 'free `end with a nipple member 23, having a body of reduced diameter compared to the syringe tube, which body is adapted to be inserted into the valve plug in the manner shown in Fig. 2, The nipple is inserted through the opening in the plug and between those portions of the plug at opposite sides of the slit. This causes the inner end portions oi the valve plug or member -to be spread apart against the yielding action of the surrounding elastic valve housing so that the nipple will be in free communication with the interior of the receptacle. It will also be apparent from Fig. 3 that when the nipple is withdrawn the elastic portions of the valve member on opposite sides of the slit will be returned to the tightly abutting relation so as to seal the valve opening eiectively against leakage.

As the valve is a self-closing valve, no screw stopper or similar closing device is required, which may become loose in the use of the article. It is only necessary to insert the nipple into the valve socketed body to establish connection of the tube II with the liquid receptacle so as to adapt the device for use as a fountain syringe, and it is only necessary to withdraw the nipple used with the self-closing valve, in order to convert the device into a water bag or ice bag. In the use of the coupling for connecting the syringe tube detachably to the bag, the enlarged edge of thefbag. This opening 24 is provided in v a thick wall portion 25, having a .slot 25 open to the edge of the bag. In case .a hook is used, the free end thereof may be accommodated in the slot 2G. This obviates the necessityof providing a projecting tab on the bag.

It Ywill be noted that the connection between the syringe tube and the bag body is located at one of the side faces of the bag, and that the axis of the valve member is arranged on a slight upward and inward inclination, there being an acute angle between this axis and the lower part of the' bag face at that side in which the tube is entered. This enables the tube to be inserted in an upward and inward direction, which 'is a matter of convenience in assembling the parts, and by this arrangement, also, a larger', more effective valve and coupling structure may be employed than would otherwise be the case. The valve and coupling structure projects only slightly from the bag face, as shown in the drawing, and this does not detract materially from the generally stream-lined appearance which the bag may have. Other forms of receptacles may, however, be used.

While we have shown a preferred embodiment of our invention, it will be noted that it is capable of being embodied in many diiferent forms, and that various 'modifications and changes can be made without departure from the principles of theV invention or the scope of the claims.

We do not claim herein a fountain syringe hav-ing a liquid receptacle and a syringe tube, said receptacle having associated with its wall a valve, said valve comprising means normally closing'the receptacle movable to open position bythe impingement of the syringe tube, or other features claimed in our application Serial No. 447,032, led June 15, 1942.

What we claim is:

l. A couplingr for a nipple of a syringe tube or the like, the nipple being provided adjacent the free end with an enlarged holding portion, said coupling comprising an outer elastic wall, and an elastic plug compressed by said Wall, said plug Yhaving a socketed entrance portion and a split inner portion adapted to be spread by the inser tion of the nipple, the holding portion of the nipple being engaged in the interior of the plug.

' 2. In a coupling, the combination of an elas- 4tic Aouter member, an elastic plug held under compression thereby and having a through opening which is normally closed and sealed but is adaptedto be opened by a nipple inserted therein, `a, .nipple vinserted into said plug and holding it open with the plug in external gripping engagement with the nipple, and means for preventing relative axial displacement of the nipple and `plu-g.

3. In a coupling, the combination vof a nipple having means of connection at one end for a ytubing element, an elastic plug having a through opening in which said nipple is gripped for coupling purposes so as to prevent relative longitudinal movement of the nipple and plug, and an external elastic Wall by which the plug is compressed and by which it is held in gripping engagement with the nipple..

4. In a coupling, the combination of a nipple having means of connection Yat `one end `for a tubing element, an elastic plug having a through opening in whlch said vnipple is gripped for coupling purposes so as to prevent relative longitudinal movement of the nipple and plug, and an external elastic wall by which the plug is compressed and by which it is held in gripping engagement with the nipple, said plug having a split portion spread apart by the nipple, and the nipple having external means engaging the plug interiorly adjacent the split portion to hold the nipple against inadvertent withdrawal.

PAUL S. MADSEN. ARTHUR A. ARNOLD. 

